SOCIAL MEDIA

Monday, April 17, 2023

Books I've Been Reading

Hello friends! I hope you all had a nice weekend. We had the most beautiful spring weather and were able to attend the cutest little "Earth Day" event at one of our favorite parks. 




The kids built a birdhouse, we played outside for hours, they went fishing and caught a fish (yay-- it's so rare to actually catch one at this pond!), and then got to take a packet of wildflower seeds home to plant. 

It was such a wonderful way to spend our Saturday. 

Today I am sharing a roundup of books I have read so far this year. My to-read list is LOOOONG and ever-growing (I'm not exaggerating, it's 54 books deep 😳). I had all these plans that I would read so many books while recovering from chemo but to be honest, I'm either asleep or I'm up doing things. If I'm not well enough to be up, I'm sleeping through the symptoms. If I'm well, I'm playing with the kids. Somehow I have less time to read, rather than more. Anyway, I have still managed to read a few books so far this year and many of them have been very good. A perk of many of my friends sending me their favorite books! Let's have a look:

Atomic Habits-- I saw this one on someone else's list they were reading for 2023 (Dara, maybe? Adrienne?) and thought it looked like a positive way to start the year. I really liked this and thought it had great advice for establishing positive habits. I give it a solid A. 

The German Wife-- Well, since I have loved all of Kelly Rimmer's other books, I knew I needed to add this one to my list. I am so happy I did. This one is most likely going to be a contender for best book of the year! Kelly Rimmer does a wonderful job of character development, and has you rooting for her characters throughout the book. Even the characters you shouldn't "root" for, you come to. understand. If you love historical fiction and haven't read this one yet, please add it to your list!

Vacationland-- I believe I saw this on Tanya's blog over the summer and added it to my list. I have been to Maine several times in the summer and loved reading about small-town Maine and picturing myself being there. Overall I really liked the book, but found one of the characters to be a little annoying so I give it a B. 

In Five Years-- Someone gave me this as a book to read while I was at chemo--- yikes. Let me just say, LOVED the book, but not a good suggestion for someone going through cancer (sorry for a potential spoiler there). I really loved the main character and found her very likable, and also really enjoyed the friendship storyline. Overall I give the book an A+, just don't give to someone with cancer. 😉

Winter Garden-- Speaking of not-uplifting-but-a-fabulous-book, The Winter Garden was another really great book! You all know I love a good historical fiction, especially if it's a time/place where I learn something new. This book took place in Leningrad during the siege of Leningrad in WW2. I had heard of the siege before, but had not read a book that took place there during that time. Kristin Hannah, as always, does a wonderful job with character development and has you on the edge of your seat to find out what happens to her characters. I give this one an A+ too.  

Reckless Girls-- A friend gave me this one too and I loved it!! I loved the setting, thought it had a very unique plot, and loved how it ended. If you're looking for a thriller, this one will probably be on my list of "best books" at the end of the year too! A+ for this one too!

1000 Hours Outside-- I was very excited for this book to come out, and there was quite a wait for it at our local library! As you all know, we have been trying to spend more time outside as a family this year, and this book is filled with ideas on how to get outside in each season. Some of them are "tried and true" ideas you've probably already thought of, some of them are more unique. Either way, it's nice on a day where you think "what in the world are we going to do today?" to open up this book and have several ideas right in front of you. The author breaks the ideas up by season too, so you can flip right to whichever season you're in and find some fun seasonal activities. I give this book an A+ as well, and plan to buy my own copy so I have it to reference whenever I want.

14 Hours 'Til Bedtime-- I was hanging out with two sweet friends a couple weeks ago, both of whom are hilarious, and one of them recommended this book as a funny take on being a stay-at-home-mom. She was right! You won't read anything groundbreaking here, but if you're looking for cute, quick, funny stories about motherhood, then this is a good book for you. Something that can make you chuckle through the "bad" times and look forward to when your cute kiddos wake up again. I give it a solid A.  


Thanks for reading along today! Like I said, my book list is CRAZY long... but are there any good ones you'd recommend I add to it?

Today I am linking up with Sarah and Holly for Hello Monday.



6 comments :

  1. Completely agree on your assessment of Vacationland- it was SO SLOW for me and yes some of the characters were super annoying! Ha! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. It sounds like you've read so many great books this month!! I love most of Rimmer's books to so I'll have to check out this one. I think Winter Garden is one of my all time favorite novels; I'm not sure what it was exactly about it but years later and I still think of that book.

    ReplyDelete
  3. We must have similar reading taste because so many of these have been 4 and 5 star books for me. German Wife will really stick with me because it taught me about parts of history I wasn't familiar with. Love the Earth day pictures!

    ReplyDelete
  4. The German Wife and Vacationland are on my list too! Thanks for sharing your faves so far.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I requested the 1000 hours book at our library. We are great about being outside, but it is usually at a game or practice. I'm looking for some new ideas. I loved Atomic Habits, Vacationland, and In Five Years! In Five Years would be a tough read at chemo, sorry that someone suggested it to you. Have a great day!

    ReplyDelete